Video conferencing systems are known in which an icon or thumbnail image of each of the participants is provided on a conferencing screen. Typically such icons are arranged in no particular order (for instance in order of joining the conference) which can make it difficult for a conference organiser to identify the next presenter or to change the presentation order.
This identification and prioritisation task can become much more difficult where the conference is a constituted meeting of many persons, for instance the AGM of a large distributed company. The mere placing on screen of the icons of those joining the meeting may require more screen space than is available, resulting in the exclusion of some icons from the screen. The problem of identifying a participant wishing to speak and organising them into the speaking order provides additional problems of advising each person who is already in the speaking order of any changes and keeping participants aware of any changes in the meeting process.
Therefore a need exists for a solution to the problem of managing the placement of icons of those participating in a video conference and of managing the processes of the conference in such a way that participants can be easily made aware of them.
The present invention provides a solution to this and other problems which offers advantages over the prior art or which will at least provide the public with a useful choice.
To this end it is an object of the invention to provide a method of presenting to participants in a video conference or meeting an indication of the current and future progression of the conference or meeting in a manner which is unobtrusive in relation to the content of the video conference.
The terms “meeting” and “conference” are used interchangeably within the specification with the inference that a “meeting” may be formally structured and recorded while a “conference” may not be.
All references, including any patents or patent applications cited in this specification are hereby incorporated by reference. No admission is made that any reference constitutes prior art. The discussion of the references states what their authors assert, and the applicants reserve the right to challenge the accuracy and pertinency of the cited documents. It will be clearly understood that, although a number of prior art publications are referred to herein; this reference does not constitute an admission that any of these documents form part of the common general knowledge in the art, in New Zealand or in any other country.
It is acknowledged that the term ‘comprise’ may, under varying jurisdictions, be attributed with either an exclusive or an inclusive meaning. For the purpose of this specification, and unless otherwise noted, the term ‘comprise’ shall have an inclusive meaning—i.e. that it will be taken to mean an inclusion of not only the listed components it directly references, but also other non-specified components or elements. This rationale will also be used when the term ‘comprised’ or ‘comprising’ is used in relation to one or more steps in a method or process.